Socioeconomic Mobility, Expectations and Attitudes Towards Inequality in Brazil

Abstract

After the end of the political and economic cycle that gave rise to the phenomenon that became known as the Brazilian new middle class, in this article we argue that this reading was not limited to verifying the increase in income and consume power of thousands of families, but also framed it within a broader narrative that has hindered the sociological investigation of the phenomenon. Thus, our first objective is to develop, with the support of empirical data from the National Household Sample Survey (PNAD-IBGE), an alternative interpretation of the changes observed in Brazilian society in recent years. Our second objective is to reflect, with the help of data from the Survey on the Middle Class (CESOP-UNICAMP-2008), and also from qualitative research previously prepared by the authors, on the possible impacts of these changes on the expectations of individuals and, thus, on their perceptions and attitudes towards the enormous inequalities still present in the country.

Brazilian White-Collar Employees’ Discourses of Meaningful Work and Calling

“…Impermanence discourses uphold discontinuities in work and, by extension, personal lives in globalized markets. Impermanence has been shown to manifest in low job stability, part-time jobs, informal sector work, ambiguities about class distributions and opportunities for social and income mobility (Scalon et al, 2021), as well as meanings of class regarding inequalities and racial injustices (Lustig et al, 2020;Salata & Scalon, 2020), and myths of meritocracy (Wayne & Cabral, 2021). Impermanence promotes workers' autonomy as means of dealing with discontinuities while also affording opportunities for more fluid work arrangements and pursuit of new experiences throughout careers (Kuhn et al, 2008).…”

“…The 2000s saw the rise of the Brazilian middle class. Analyses pointed to lower unemployment, more formal economy and white-collar work, increased income and education, and greater consumption (e.g., mobile phones, washing machines; Salata & Scalon, 2020). However, the rise of the middle class is contested.…”

“…However, the rise of the middle class is contested. Reanalysis of large-scale datasets display Brazilian workers' dissatisfaction and uneasy relationship with middle-class expectations, socioeconomic gaps between (upper) middle class and working class, perceived instabilities and injustices, and returns to the informal economy (Costa, 2020; Salata & Scalon, 2020).…”

La dimensión política del consumo: aproximaciones teóricas para abordar problemas contemporáneos

“…mídia consumo, são paulo v. 19, n. 55, p. 312-332, mai./ago. 2022 micaela diaz rosaenz 323 y prácticas de consumo y del uso del crédito, financiamiento y el creciente proceso de endeudamiento (BARROS; OLIVEIRA, 2014;RANGEL, 2012;SBICCA et al, 2012;MATTOSO;SILVA, 2009;MOTA GUEDES, 2006; entre muchos otros). Si la movilidad social ascendente del primer decenio del 2000 motivó una gran producción académica con eje en la relación entre política y consumo, el fin del ciclo de prosperidad económica y los cambios políticos, corrieron el foco de interés.…”

An Analysis of Leakage and Injection of Households Related to Socio-Economic Opportunities and Mobility in Selected Districts of Central Punjab, Pakistan

“…These factors include financial, physical, and geographical hurdles and lack of encouragement to pursue higher education. Since the beginning of the present century, most of the studies have identified several socioeconomic factors related to the mobility of households, such as education, occupation, and income but fail to bring up a clear picture related to the structural changes in society (Salata & Scalon, 2020).…”